Ctf9

This new troll has evolved, aping the kindness of the regular posters instead of trying to be brash or bold. Honestly it feels like someone fed the fire Mike Woodson thread into chat gpt and then asked it to spit out a successful troll. At least the human was decent enough to add “no Chris Beard discussion” to the prompt.

I can’t believe I’ve been tricked into praising Alford. I need to go back to lurking, lol. But yeah if I remember right they were mostly Alford’s guys, though Cronin convinced them to stay. Juzang was a transfer—Cronin got him, but Juzang wanted to come home, too. That final four team was super fun—gutty offense mixed with Cronin defense. But I’ve never seen him put together a team that was as well rounded as that one. I hoped he might keep it up at UCLA after the final four run but it seems like offensively he just is what he is.

I grew up following UC, before switching to IU after a move. I enjoyed watching Cronin once a year in the tournament, mostly for his teams’ defense and effort, though they usually lost too early. But watching Cronin for a full season was not very fun. Not because of wins and losses but because he can just be sour and negative while leading teams that are very slow and physical on defense. His final four offense was an exception, led by players he did not recruit.

My wife said we’re like the crazy Taylor Swift fans, analyzing every detail and creating elaborate theories for each setback. But Swifties have like a dozen albums to listen to, and we need only one Brad Stevens.

Also I think given the trauma of Archie and Woodson people are forgetting how exhausting Crean was as a human being. This is something that the Wikipedia coaching records can never capture. What does it feel like for this person to be a character in our lives? Crean had some real positives. (Remember him taking McDonald’s to a person outside the restaurant?) But he was stubborn and defensive and awkward and honestly kinda manic. And he was inconsistent, and his trajectory was going down. Recruiting was tailing off locally and nationally. Juwan and OG were diamonds in the rough but we were all tired of an irritating coach who wouldn’t adjust his turnovers or defense and who also needed to find diamonds in the rough. Most days, I remember the good parts of the Crean era. But it was time to move on from him, and it’s worth reflecting on the legit bad parts too.

I agree! I would have been happy with Matta as the post-Archie hire, though it seems it wouldn’t have worked out. I have no info either. I’m just saying that sometimes I worry Dolson overrates longevity and experience. There’s no defending the idea of hiring Pat Fitzgerald for instance.

I’m just a lurker here but I will say Turgeon fits with at least two other Dolson attempted hires: Fitzgerald in football and Matta in basketball. I would much rather risk a young and unproven coach than go this route but I do think there’s evidence that this is a route that appeals to Dolson.

@Chris007 saying love is in the air—could be a Valentine’s Day joke, but also Philly is the city of brotherly love.